Film: A Better Tomorrow (1986)

--What do you think is “a better tomorrow” in Mark’s, Tse-Kit’s, and Tse-Ho’s minds?

--If Mark didn’t come back at the end and Tse-Ho did survive in the gunfight, do you think Tse-Ho would join Mark eventually? Why?

--What do you think was a bigger driving force for Ho in the second half of the movie: familial loyalty or getting his own redemption? Or both?

--Do you think the film was effective in the way that it balanced graphic violence with silly humour? Why do you think the director blended these two genres?   

--What do you think are the qualities of this film that have made it enticing or relatable enough with its viewers to encourage two revisits and revivals within the span of 32 years?

--What kind of direct parallels or trope comparisons can be made between A Better Tomorrow and Western noir? What differences can be noticed?

Some classmates thought that Ho insisted to be a better man in the second half of the movie, because of both of his familial loyalty and his attempts for his own redemption. These two reasons are in fact associated with each other. Ho was doing all he could to prove to his brother that he was no longer a bad guy, because he did not want to lose his brother, which was his familial loyalty, and he also wanted to redeem his wrongdoings by submitting the disk to his brother. I think this answer comprehensively and objectively reflects Ho’s true inner thoughts in the second half of the movie.

Even though A Better Tomorrow was first released 32 years ago, its reputation is still very big until today, and many of its viewers find it worthy to watch the movie again. The violence and exciting scenes in this movie represent the classics of Hong Kong’s gangster films. The acting performance of the casts is also very outstanding and is appreciated by the audience. The masculinity between men is also a main focus point in this movie. The ways in which men were fighting and shooting at each other represent the traditional meaning of men masculinity, which is often violent. Soft masculinity between men was also depicted in this movie. The brotherhood between Mark and Ho, and the familial loyalty between Ho and Kit. This movie told its audience that men masculinity does not only come from people’s traditional standards, but also can be soft.